When Tim explained to us all why he was uninstalling Windows 8, one of the recurring points of frustration was its tablet-focused design – from the big white spaces designed to have a finger podged into them, to the often convoluted mouse gestures.

It seems Microsoft have set about trying to solve some of those problems in the only way it knows how, short of reversing the whole sorry mess – by introducing support for a touch-based mouse.

The Microsoft touch mouse was actually introduced for Windows 7, but will see new support added to make sense of the interface formerly known as Metro.

Users will be able to scroll up or down with a one finger swipe, while management of apps and access to Windows 8 charms, settings, device management, sharing and search will be handled by a two finger swipe.

So what’s the ETA on swipe gestures in our games? Well, that’d be entirely dependent on take-up for the Microsoft mouse – not to mention an OS which, Metro aside, plays host to a litany of disasters.

Will it be enough? Will swipe support change minds on the most divisive Microsoft OS in forever?